A global system for mobile telecommunications (“GSM”), enhanced data rates for GSM evolution (“EDGE”) radio access network (“GERAN”) is a part of the widely deployed cellular GSM system, and also of the combined universal mobile telecommunications system (“UMTS”)/GSM network. GERAN is the acronym used to describe a GSM with EDGE, which is the radio portion of the network that joins base stations and base station controllers. A telephone operator's network typically includes one or more GERANs, coupled with universal mobile terrestrial radio access networks (“UTRANs”). The standards for GERAN are maintained by the 3rd Generation Partnership Project (“3GPP”).
A cellular broadcast service (“CBS”) is a mobile telecommunication service that is intended to provide different kinds of short broadcast messages, and has recently been considered as an option to send a notice about emergencies or disaster information to subscribing mobile stations in a selected area of concern, which can be an area of a few blocks, an entire state, or even an entire country. A specification describing cellular broadcast service is provided in 3GPP TS 03.41, entitled “3rd Generation Partnership Project; Technical Specification Group Terminals; Technical Realization of Cell Broadcast Service (CBS), Release 1998,” Version 7.4.0, (September 2000), which is incorporated herein by reference. The cellular broadcast service relates to a cellular network-based short message broadcast service that has been planned for emergency alert services by the 3rd Generation Partnership Project.
An important consideration for the planning and design of a cellular broadcast service is the message delivery time required for delivery of an emergency message to an end user in a designated area of concern. Absolute limits for message delivery time have not been presently set, but a rapid message delivery process is an obvious need. Short delivery periods are challenging in present cellular networks, even for a simple text alert on the cellular broadcast service, indicating an important need to reduce the message delivery time. Therefore, what is needed in the art is a system and method that allows for more rapid delivery of an emergency message on a broadcast channel to an end user in a designated area of concern.